


Freedom Comes With a Price

by PegaPonyPrincess



Series: Office AU [6]
Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: F/M, Family, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Sister-Sister Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-08
Updated: 2015-02-08
Packaged: 2018-03-11 05:56:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3316715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PegaPonyPrincess/pseuds/PegaPonyPrincess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lucina's off to college and now Cynthia has true freedom.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Freedom Comes With a Price

Cynthia enters with a broad smile. Day one of Lucina gone meant there was _nothing_ stopping her from her typical schemes.

She starts her day with a prideful stride which does not go unnoticed by her mother, who raises a brow in questioning from the front desk, but decides not to speak. It's better not to question the youngest when her mind's set.

Pushing the door open, Cynthia's eyes catch onto an obliviously tired Frederick who worked late the night before. Papers amongst papers on his desk, they _almost_ hide him.

"Hi, Frederick!" Chimes Cynthia, hands held behind her back as she peeks around one of the many piles. "Whatcha up to?"

He peeks up long enough to give her a shadow of a smile. "Paperwork."

The answer was dull -- too _bland_ for Cynthia's tastes that she considers turning around at that moment and finding her next pray. Though... it was always around this time that her sister would butt in, making up apologizes for their behavior and excusing them.

_Lame._

"What _kiiiind_ of paperwork?" She says in a sing-song voice, hoping closer whilst keeping an eye on him. It wasn't that she actually _wanted_ to know what he was working on, but the way that Frederick's eyebrow twitched when he was annoyed was too good to pass up on. "Issit for my father?"

"No," he responds, eyes forward. "It's for Robin."

That earned a pout. How could she tease him about _that_?

"Don't you have better things to be doing?" he asks suddenly, finally looking up from his papers to her. For a second Cynthia could have sworn concern flashed in his eyes (but that could have just been fear that she was going to stay longer than he liked). "Or are you just abusing power now that Lucina's off to college?"

Her pout grew as he spoke. So much for messing with him -- _he was already on the money!_

"Uuuuh, of course!" Cynthia manages, eyes tracing back to the door. She fears the longer she stays, the more she'll get stuck talking about her sister. "Like now I _totally_ gotta go!"

"If you're going after your father, don't." He calls to her just as she reaches for the door, eyes back on his papers. "He's in a meeting."

Choosing on not responding, Cynthia gives her best smile before exiting the room and closing the door behind her. So much for bothering Frederick, it seems.

\---

Her next target stands by the soda machine, leaning against it and sipping at their drink. Before she can even compile a plan, her name gets called.

"Cynthia, hey! I was looking for you."

She pouts, for what she feels is the _tenth_ time that day. Donnel approaches her, a toothy wide toothy smile evident on his face. He stops his cart near the elevator and gives his nose a quick rub before he speaks.

"I was gonna give you this -- well, I _guess_ it's for Lucina." He reaches to his pocket and pulls out an envelope, and Cynthia can't help but wonder what lies within it. "I was gonna give it to her before she left and all, you see, but I never got the chance to say bye or good luck to her!"

Something tugs at Cynthia's heart as she takes the envelope from Donnel. She's not sure to place it on the fact that Lucina's off and gone to college, or that he didn't think of getting _her_ anything. After all, they are a _dual_ package deal.

"O-oh," she stammers, looking away from his bright smile. "I'll give it to her when I get the chance!"

"Cool, thanks Cynthia!" His beam is genuine and she can't help but smile back despite that heavy feeling that dwells within her. He says his goodbyes (and something about cleaning up his spare room for the tenth time this week) and pushes his cart off, leaving the sixteen year old all by herself in the middle of the hall.

Huffing, she sticks the envelope in her bag and places her hands on her hips. She doesn't need Lucina, anyways! She can have lots of fun without her!

\---

It's been one week later and Cynthia has never been so bored in her entire life.

She has visited _everyone_ by seven -- the worst part is that she gets to the building around 3:30. Everyone greets her nearly the same, and asks "How's Lucina?". Cynthia stumbles over the response, because while she says her sister's doing great she honestly has no idea. It's boring with that dull tone her elder sister gives when she's about to go bother Frederick, or when she's about to pull a prank on Morgan.

She doesn't want to admit it, but she misses Lucina. She longs for the way her sister attempts to hide a smile as they both leave Frederick's office, or how she rolls her eyes the slightest at Cynthia's joke. And most of all, she misses the way Lucina messes up her hair after she has a long day in just the perfect way.

Her pout is nearly constant, as Frederick takes note of it as he walks by. "Cynthia." He states as he pauses his stride, shuffling papers in his arms. "You look down."

Cynthia hates how he's right, how he's able to read her like an open book. Before she's able to respond, he's speaking again and the words flow out of his mouth like he has prepared them.

"I'm sure your sister misses you too," he says as casually as possible, but the teenager is able to catch a certain strain in his voice. "But do you think she'd want you to be like this?"

Frederick leaves before Cynthia can even try to reply. Her brow furrows, deeply, and the pout only grows as she solemnly steps up the stairs. She hates how right he is -- but how would he know what it'd be like to be without _his sister?_

She kicks at the next step, absentmindedly, and immediately regrets it. Her big toe stings in pain as she yelps and hops up the final step to hold onto her foot while whimpering. She stumbles to the nearby bench and sticks out her foot before saying, "kiss it better!".

And Cynthia remembers that a) there would be no way that Lucina would _ever_ kiss her foot better and b) she's off at _college_. She laughs at herself, for a moment or so, before leaning back and sighing. "You wouldn't want to kiss my dirty shoes, huh Lucy?"

The silence is her only reply and she shrugs at it.

"Neither would I."

\---

Friday came slowly, making it a week and a half without Lucina around in the building.

Cynthia sulks. She's so bored that now she has set herself in her mother's chair, waiting impatiently for someone to talk to. She's been counting down the minutes that her parents have been in a meeting, and how long it'll take for them to get back.

She jumps at the sound of the office phone ringing that she nearly falls out of the chair (and it was _so_ comfortable). Papers begin to fly and Cynthia's heart races as she tries to grab them all before they fall to the ground, and as she succeeds she peaks a look at the caller id. Her heart flutters as she waits for a splint second, before dropping as she reads a number she doesn't recognize.

Sulking, _again_ , she purses her lips and kicks her feet on her mother's desk. Somewhere in the back of her mind she hears Lucina going _on and on_ about how she shouldn't do that, and she sighs and lowers her feet. Cynthia them proceeds to fix the papers on the desk, then the pens.

She peeks at clock. Ten minutes passed and she smiles.

The voices of her parents grow louder as they reach the peak of the stairs, and she jumps from her mother's chair to greet them. Chrom gives her a warm smile (and is there some sadness in his eyes, or is Cynthia just imagining that?) while Sumia pulls her into a hug, and says softly, "Hello, darling".

" _Moooooom_ , I'm so bored!" Cynthia whines, wrapping her arms around her mother's waist and her pout grows. She listens as Sumia takes a deep breath, exhales then stays quiet for a moment. She assumes that her parents are doing that mental communication thing again. "When's Lucina comin--"

She stops as she hears Sumia sniffle softly, and how Chrom shoulders shake the slightest. He refuses to cry in front of his beloved, and he has made that known.

It finally comes to Cynthia's attention that she's not the only one missing her sister. She watches as her mother, just briefly, buries her face into her father's chest, how she lets out a hardly audible cry. She doesn't realize that she's crying, either, until Chrom's solemn expression softens and his hand is reaching for her. She moves slowly, engulfing herself in her parnet's love, and noting the missing spot where Lucina used to be.

Two months to go.


End file.
